Price hikes in Egypt hurt consumers

According to new poll, 82 percent of Egyptian consumers believe recent spate of inflation will affect their lifestyles and spending habits.

Egyptians[2] surveyed in a recent poll on inflation confirm they have felt significant price increases for most basic commodities.

"While price increases on vital commodities have been felt across all income brackets, they have been most acutely felt among those with monthly incomes below LE2000," the study, conducted by global market research company TNS, concluded.

The vast majority of the poll's respondents said their lifestyles and short-term future plans had been impacted by the recent wave of price hikes[3].

Only four percent said price increases had not significantly impacted their lifestyles, while a whopping 82 percent said that recent price hikes would likely affect both their lifestyles and spending habits.

Of the 28 percent of those polled who had been planning[4] to invest in real estate before the recent spate of inflation, only 6 percent still plan to proceed, the poll found. Of the 27 percent who had been planning to purchase automobiles, meanwhile, only 6 percent said they still planned to do so.

According to those polled, vital commodities have been most affected by recent inflation (79 percent), followed by groceries (66 percent), household goods including gas, electricity and water (39 percent) and transport costs (33 percent).

"Recent price inflation was largely driven by broad-based increases in food and non-food prices," said TNS CEO for Egypt and North Africa Tamer El-Naggar.

The Egyptian pound, he added, which has lost more than 10 percent of its value against the dollar since last year, "pushed up the cost of imported goods and contributed to inflation, which grew to 8.2 percent in February from 6.3 percent in January."

Eighty-six percent of poll respondents said they expected continued price inflation in the near-term future.